All kinds of Pleasures
by iwanttoliveintheuk
Summary: What would've happened if Ayla opened herself to people of the night she became a Mamutoi? A beautiful night of shared Pleasures, surely... #lgbt


(The story takes place on the night Ayla becomes a Mamutoi. The beginning is from the actual book, and then it switches to my story. The end will merge back with the book.)

The sun was setting and a sharp wind hurried everyone back inside the lodge, carrying the food with them. This time, when Ayla was asked to select first, she wasn't as shy. This feast was in her honor, and though being the center of attention was still not easy for her, she was happy for the reason.

Deegie came to sit with her, and Ayla caught herself staring. Deegie's thick reddish-brown hair was pulled back from her face and wrapped into a coil that was piled high on her head. A string of round ivory beads, each one carved and pierced by hand, had been coiled in with her hair and stood out as contrasting highlights. She wore a long, loose dress of pliable leather—Ayla thought of it as a long tunic—that draped in soft folds from the belted waist, dyed deep brown with a rather shiny, burnished finish. It was sleeveless, but wide at the shoulders, giving the appearance of short sleeves.

A fringe of long, reddish-brown mammoth hair fell from her shoulders in back and from a V-shaped yoke in front, and hung to just below her waist. The neckline was outlined by a triple row of ivory beads, and around her neck she wore a necklace of conical seashells, spaced by cylindrical lime tubes and pieces of amber. Around her right upper arm was an ivory armband incised with an alternating chevron pattern. The pattern was repeated in colors of ochre reds, yellows, and browns in the belt, which was woven of animal hair, some of it dyed.

Attached to the belt by a loop was an ivory-handled flint knife in a rawhide sheath, and suspended from another loop, the lower section of a hollow black aurochs horn, a drinking cup that was a talisman of the Aurochs Hearth. The skirt had been cut on the diagonal, starting at the sides above the knee, to a point both in front and back. Three rows of ivory beads, a strip of rabbit fur, and a second strip of fur that had been pieced together from the striped backs of several ground squirrels accented the diagonal hemline, and hanging from it was another fringe of the long outer guard hairs of the woolly mammoth, reaching to her lower calf.

She was not wearing leggings, and her legs showed through the fringe, as well as dark brown high boots, moccasinlike at the feet, burnished to a waterproof shine. Ayla found herself wondering how they made leather shine. All of her hides and pelts had the soft natural texture of buckskin. But mostly she just stared at Deegie in awe, and thought she was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. "Deegie, that is a beautiful … tunic?" "You could call it a long tunic. It's really a summer dress. I made it for the Meeting last year, when Branag first declared for me. I changed my mind about the outfit I was going to wear. I knew we'd be inside, and with all the celebrating, it will get warm."

Ayla nodded. She was warm herself, and despite wearing the lightest clothes she had, she was starting to sweat and felt a little embarrassed. "Maybe you can teach me how to make such a beautiful garment, some day", Ayla asked. Deegie filled up with pride and immediately agreed. Ayla noticed her happiness through the glistening eyes of the beautiful woman next to her.

After they finished the meal, Talut announced it was time for a break. Everyone was full and glad to be able to catch some fresh air again. Jondalar followed Wymez who wanted to show him his latest improvements on the spear-thrower. Ayla watched them go and noticed Ranec smiling in the corner of the room. She flushed and focused back on Jondalar. The other men quickly followed and soon the hearth was left with only a handful of people.

"What do you want to do, before we continue the ceremony?" she asked the red headed woman next to her. Deegie smirked, "I can think of something. Almost everyone is out, so let me show you something". She grabbed the foreigner by the hand and took her to a room further back, hidden behind the one they had enjoyed the sweatbath the previous day.

"I would have never known it was there! Every day I find out about a new room here!" Ayla shouted, shocked that she had not seen the flap in the mammoth hide leading to the 30 square feet room. It was just big enough for a few furs to be laid next to each other on a bench. Suddenly, Ayla turned back and asked : "What is this place, then?". Deegie flashed a look full of mischief and started : "Sit, Ayla. Let me tell you a story. There are Mamutoi tales about all kinds of things, but I have noticed you are gifted like Mamut, if not more. So I'd like to tell you about things only Mamut does. In some camps, Mamuts have no gender, or they express their desires towards both. Meaning, if a man or a woman wants to 'relieve their needs', as you say, they can go to the most spiritual person of the clan."

Ayla was a bit lost, she wasn't sure what Deegie's point was. Her puzzled look was more than enough for the slightly older woman to explain :" Ayla. I believe you were destined to be a Mamut. Maybe one day, when I've started my own camp, you'll be able to transfer and be my Mamut. But that's not where I'm going with this. What I mean to say is, I've seen how you look at me. And maybe it's time for you to have your first Mamut experience. If you like".

Ayla was staring right into Deegie's eyes, and all of a sudden, a shiver of understanding shook her. Her lips creased on the sides and a smile formed on her face. She had indeed wondered what that may be like, but never thought it was an actual part of the Mamutoi traditions than to share Pleasures with someone of the same sex. "Do you mean that you would like to be the one sharing this experience with me?" Ayla asked, somewhat shyly. Her heart started racing as the words left her mouth, and Deegie had the biggest smile on her face. Instead of answering back, she leaned in and pressed her lips softly against Ayla's, who closed her eyes as a response and fully accepted the invitation. They had bonded since she and Jondalar had stumbled upon Talut and Tulie's camp, and the friendship was strong enough that Ayla fully trusted the more experienced woman.

Deegie gently pushed Ayla's shoulders down so that she would lie on the fur.


End file.
